Lost Balance
by GalacticaCAG
Summary: This story centers around two characters on opposite sides of the War: Ty Lee and my own OC, Han Jinn. I rate this Teen for later chapters. No slash or lemon, but definite violence. Constructive criticism appreciated and anonymous reviews allowed. Thanks!
1. To the Reader

_**To the reader**__**:**_

_Before you begin, I feel you should be made aware of a few changes I have made to the Avatar storyline and where deviations may occur. First, let me state that I in no way own ANY of the characters from __Avatar: The Last Airbender__ and make no monetary gain through the writing of this story._

_For the purposes of this story, I have altered the timeline a little bit, adding roughly two years to the ages of all the characters. The major canon characters we will meet are aged as follows:_

_Aang: 14 (statistically 114)_

_Katara: 16_

_Sokka: 17_

_Toph: 14_

_Suki: 17_

_Zuko: 18_

_Iroh: 66_

_Azula: 16_

_Mai: 17_

_And Ty Lee: 16_

_I will not divulge my reasoning as yet, for fear of ruining the story for those of you with quick and analytical minds._

_I also inform you all that, while the "Gaang" will be involved, they will appear to a lesser degree when compared to some of my OCs and Ty Lee. I decided to make Ty Lee a main character in my story mostly do to the lack of attention to her character, as well as Mai's, during the series and in many fanfictions where I feel they are sorely missed. Therefore, we will be seeing more of Azula, Mai, and Zuko than Aang and his compatriots until later on in the story._

_The beauty of centering a story around a minor character and a group of OCs is that you a given a great deal of leniency with your imagination. As I plot this now, I see no great reason for me to deviate from the greater Avatar storyline._

_One last thing I would like to mention is that I am not sure how often this will be updated. I am working on another story right now, but I took to this one when my muse abandoned me on that story for a while and gave inspiration for this story instead. Hopefully, updates will come monthly._

_Thank you all, and I hope you enjoy it._

_-GalacticaCAG_


	2. Treason!

**Disclaimer****: I own nothing but my OCs**

**Introduction**

_He was an Earth Kingdom Soldier fighting to defend his home…_

_She was a noblewoman-turned circus performer recruited by the Princess Azula to hunt the Avatar…_

_Around them the world was in chaos, in a state of unending war. Only the Avatar could restore the balance that had been lost. One side fights to protect him and looks to him for hope; the other seeks to destroy him. In the end, only one could be victorious… _

**Chapter One**

**Ba Sing Se, Earth Kingdom**

The Earth King's Palace was pristine and peaceful- a stark contrast to the world outside the city's great walls. The Dei Li strove mightily to maintain this illusion and many within the walls pretended that the war didn't exist… others truly did not know.

This fact never ceased to astonish and anger Han Jinn every time he entered the capitol city. As Earth Kingdom officer, he knew that hundreds of brave Earth Kingdom soldiers died everyday to defend this city from the Fire Nation, whose sacrifices were ignored, unknown, and ultimately unappreciated. The Royal Palace, whose steps he now mounted, was the very pinnacle of this ignorance; it was previously rumored that the Earth King himself didn't even know of the war's existence, that he had only recently been enlightened of its existence by the Avatar himself.

The Council of Five had summoned Jinn to the War Room for a debriefing, as he and his battalion had recently returned from the frontlines, now dangerously close to the City of Walls. Realizing his dark musings had cost him time, he ran up the last few dozen stairs, unwilling to miss an appointment with the five highest ranking generals in the Kingdom.

At length, in the Palace atrium, Han heard the soft clatter of footfalls echoing through the high-vaulted hall. Around one of the massive pillars, Han was relieved to see General Sung, apparently making his way to the War Room at a leisurely pace.

Han was about turn away from the bleary-eyed general, confident he would not be tardy, when he noted what he had previously thought to be shadows shifting in the darkness-shrouded area near the top of the hall's massive pillars. Before he could get a closer look, from the darkness he heard the brief clatter of chains before a set four shackles hurled themselves toward the unsuspecting Earth Kingdom leader. The restraints clamped upon the man's limbs before he even had the chance to react to his aggressors. Han immediately ducked back behind his pillar, not sure what to do. Enemies in the Imperial Palace was simply unheard of!

He peeked around the column as the general's assailants revealed themselves, emerging from the shadows and scurrying down pillars: Dark-cloaked Dei Li agents. Eight of them descended upon the helpless Sung, too many for Han to fight alone. Resigning himself to remaining hidden, he watched as they collected their prisoner and disappeared silently in seconds.

No sooner had they vanished from sight that Han was tearing down the corridor towards the War Room. He burst through the large double-doors to find the chamber deserted. He was too late, he realized with growing alarm: The Dei Li had arrested the entire Council, even General How. _The Dei Li had betrayed them!_

With a will, he choked back his rage as he stealthily made his way from the Palace grounds, doing his best not to draw attention to himself. Once in the city proper, Jinn ensured that he was not being tailed before abandoning some of his caution to quicken his pace towards his battalion's encampment.

The unit's remaining five hundred men had been designated a plot of land in the outer Agrarian Zone to keep them, and the war, segregated from the city. Ignoring the concerned comments from his men as he rushed through the camp with reckless abandon, likely appearing quite a spectacle to the casual observer, he threw himself into the headquarters tent, situated at the center of the encampment.

He was immediately accosted by his second-in-command, Major Liu Bao. "What is it, sir?" the man urgently inquired, greatly concerned already by his commanding officer's troubled expression.

"Summon all company commanders on the double!" Jinn gasped out, in lieu of an answer.

Bao nodded and the messengers left running. Han used the intervening minutes to catch his breath and gulp down a goblet of water until his officers ducked one-by-one through the tent flap. The six Captains were soon gathered around the central table, onto which Bao had tacked a map of Ba Sing Se.

"Gentlemen," he began gravely, "we have been betrayed. The Dei Li, likely under covert orders from Long Feng, have arrested the entire Council of Five in secret. With one blow, they have crippled the Earth Kingdom's entire war effort. We have the duty to our nation to take action!"

"You're sure, sir?" Bao asked, the first to speak, while the other officers stood silently absorbing the enormous implications of what he had just said.

"Yes." Jinn said simply.

The officers all found their voices at once, their comments and opinions mixing into an unintelligible chatter until one man's voice grew dominant over his fellows'.

"What can we do, sir?" the officer asked, "The Dei Li control Ba Sing Se. Whether out of fear or misplaced loyalty, _no one_ will believe us over the Dei Li."

Coming to a similar conclusion, Jinn's hand pounded onto the table in irritation, "You're probably right, damn it all. But we can't just stand by and watch this happen: We have a duty to the people and our King to _try_. Now, I have a plan, but it's risky. No man who doesn't wish to take part in it will be forced to do so."

Not one officer moved.

"Alright, here's what we'll do: Major Bao will take a platoon of soldiers to secure the South Agrarian Gate, but do it quietly: I don't want the traitors to realize we're up to something. Meanwhile, I want the rest of you to prepare the rest of the battalion for combat. If you are forced into a fight, avoid inflicting fatalities on non-Dei Li forces. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," Bao answered for the entire assemblage.

"Good," Han nodded. "While you are organizing, I want each of you to send me a hand-picked man from each of your respective companies. He should be an Earthbender proficient in hand-to-hand combat. Absolutely loyal. They will accompany me to the Palace."

These seemed to alarm and confuse some of his Captains:

"To the Palace, Commander?" one asked.

"You said it yourself: The Dei Li have taken over; the Palace will surely be crawling with them. What good can it do?" another urgently added.

Jinn raised his hands for silence, "Captain Ling is correct when he states that the people will never take the word of a few Army officers over that of the Dei Li. Only the Earth King himself could convince them otherwise."

The point seemed to emerge from the murk to a few of his officers, comprehension dawning on their faces. "You intend to _make_ the Earth King hear you," one said. Not asked; for it was not a question.

"Yes," Han said simply. "It is the only way the Dei Li may not be able to taint the King's judgment. Questions or comments, gentlemen?"

One man in the back was shaking his head incredulously, "Sir, with due respect, if the Earth King does _not_ believe you, our actions may be construed as treasonous and all of us will be treated as such."

Han met his gaze levelly, "I understand that, Captain Shun, but I see no other alternative as a loyal soldier of the Earth Kingdom. If you have another plan, I'm all ears."

The man was silent a long moment, brain almost visibly working within his head, before he nodded in defeat and stepped back amongst his peers.

"Very well then. And I thank you for your concern, Captain. I am convinced of what I saw, and if I am not believed, well…in a little while it won't matter anymore. Either I convince the King and we save Ba Sing Se, or the city will fall within the week," he said gravely, voice dropping an octave to further convey his conviction.

The six captains were now absolutely silent and Han knew they were behind him. "Thank you. Rouse your commands and begin deployment, gentlemen. May the Gods go with you and favor our cause."

"And with you, Commander," the officers echoed solemnly before filing out of the tent. While he waited, Jinn took a seat at his field desk, situated in a corner of the tent, to pen a half dozen brief letters to fellow army officers posted elsewhere in the city that he would trust with his own life, deciding that they must at least be warned.

When he had finished the dispatches to his satisfaction, he summoned his battalion's cadre of messengers who, upon securing their charges, whipped off on their ostrich-horses to deliver them.

Like clockwork after the riders left, the six men he had requested filed in, led by the aging, but still-able, Sergeant Takeza Shu. Shu was indeed a man Jinn trusted; the man had served in the army longer than Han had walked the earth and also fought under Han's own father in the Northern Campaign, some twenty years before, when Han was just a baby. In fact, Shu had saved his father's life in the Battle of Switchback Mountain and had ever since, he had been considered "one of the family."

Jinn walked over to the NCO and, after exchanging the appropriate military formality required before the rank-and-file, affectionately pumped his "uncle's" hand. "We've got a tough job ahead of us, Takeza."

"Well, stouter men you'll find nowhere in the whole of the world…but you best tell us what you've got in mind," Shu prodded gently.

Jinn nodded before stepping back to review the entire group. "Men, we are about to undertake perhaps the most important operation in the history of the Earth Kingdom." Seeing that he had their attention, he pressed on, "With my own eyes, I witnessed the arrest of one of the Five Generals by Dei Li agents. Executed in secret and with no warrant, I have come to believe that the Dei Li, still loyal to the known traitor Long Feng, are moving to seize absolute control over Ba Sing Se.

"The Earth is the only man who can thwart this coup and win the support of the people; but the King, befitting his status, is heavily guarded and ever under the eyes of the Dei Li. If our country is to survive, we must _make_ the Earth King hear us."

A swift glance down the line revealed uncertainty in the eyes of some of the men that Jinn had no power at his disposal to dispel.

"That is our mission. Any man who wants no part in this and wishes to leave can and should do so now."

The men deliberated silently, eyes glancing about in great rapidity, with only Shu maintaining a neutral expression. Han stood silently as one minute, then two ticked by, the soldiers seeming little closer to reaching a consensus.

Shu, having taken the measure of the situation mutely stepped forward to stand by Jinn, to illustrate his long-chosen course. Seeing the respected soldier's actions, the troopers' uncertainties seemed to wash away and, one by one, all five stepped forward.

The Sergeant stepped back into line and stood at attention, "Special Operations detachment at your service, Commander." He looked at Han with a hint of…pride?

Jinn well understood the magnitude of the decision they had made and treated it accordingly, offering a slow salute, "Thank you, men."

The six returned his gesture with a few mumbled "sirs" and a few, less-military, "We got your back, sirs".

Jinn led them over to the table in the center of the tent containing the map of Ba Sing Se, "Alright, men, here's the plan…"

_Author's Note__: Well, that's Chapter One. I put you into the action of the story pretty quickly, I know, but I think it served the appropriately. We'll see the Commander's plan put into action next chapter. When that will be posted, I don't know, as I am working on other stories and this story's inspiration just struck me._

_Well, I hope you enjoyed it. Beyond that, I always welcome constructive criticism. If you hunger for more, I love that review button and it MIGHT make me work faster!_

_Thanks for reading,_

_-The CAG_


	3. An Appointment with the Earth King

**Disclaimer****: I do not own any characters save my own OCs.**

**Chapter Two**

Jinn and his strike team, now shrouded in dark green cloaks, lay concealed among the decorative foliage of Ba Sing Se's Upper Ring, prepared to put their plan into action. At ten-minute intervals, a patrol of Royal Guardsmen would walk the perimeter of the base of the Palace's wall; in this blind spot, out of the sight of the troops manning the towers, Jinn's team would ambush the patrol and "appropriate" their uniforms to gain entrance to the Palace grounds. If they did it right, there would be no fatalities and they could approach the Palace complex unnoticed. No one _liked_ the plan, but it was the best they had.

The tense group would not have long to wait. Hulking in their ornate dark green armor, eight members of the King's Guard appeared around the corner, completely oblivious to the imminent assault, casually following their traditional patrol route. Praying his men would not spring the ambush too soon, Han raised his hand as the eight Guardsmen filed into their "kill" zone and held his breath. One by one, the eight men stepped into the predicted positions, presenting perfect targets against the Palace wall. None of his men made a move, professionally looking to him for the signal.

With a grimace, the Earth Kingdom officer let his hand fall and his men sprung into action. Leaping from concealment, each man launched a stone at his chosen target. The Guardsmen never stood a chance against such brutal efficiency, as each projectile impacted precisely upon them, knocking them out cold instantly. The last man, more out of instinct than common sense, whirled about to face his attackers…and was struck by a trio of stones as he opened his mouth to raise the alarm. Jinn couldn't help but wince at the thought of the damage three such blows could have inflicted upon him.

Dropping to his knees beside the soldier, he took the man's pulse and gave him a quick once-over to ascertain his condition. To his great relief, the man had suffered no permanent damage and he dragged him to join his fellows already drawn into the concealment of the brush.

Under cover once more, Jinn's squad was already strapping on the captured armor, and he rushed to do the same, donning the commanding sergeant's armor. With time painfully slipping away from them, they quickly bound and gagged their unconscious charges before hurrying to resume the patrol, else they arouse the suspicions of the other sentinals.

Their short sprint in the heavy armor left them sweating and sucking for breath, but a glance at the casual stance of the soldiers manning the watchtowers convinced him that the guards had thankfully noticed nothing awry.

He could feel his men's hidden anxiety and nervousness growing steadily as an almost-tangible force as they finally completed the patrol circuit and marched through the main gate. The sentries stationed there waved them through without much more than a glance. For once, Jinn was devoutly thankful for a lax in security and the effects of routine: Their ill-fitting uniforms would not stand up to close inspection.

The premises was crawling with attendants, workers, and, most importantly, guards for them to lose themselves among and they proceeded to do so without delay.

Doing their best to appear casual, the infiltrators slowly made their way to the tremendous set of stairs that led up to the top of the citadel and the Royal Residence situated there. The men breathed a collective sigh of relief as they reached the final stretch…until it was interrupted.

"You there! Sergeant!" an ostentatious voice called from behind them.

Jinn winced inwardly, doing his best not to advertise his discomfiture. Instead he took a deep breath and assumed his best "subordinate" persona before turning about to face an extremely pompous looking captain, "Yes, sir?"

"What are you doing here, sergeant?" he demanded. "Your armor designates you and your men as being part of Third Company. Your unit is assigned to protect the West Wall, not the Central Grounds." When Jinn did not immediately reply, the Captain snapped, "Speak up, man!"

Han could tell the officer was becoming suspicious as he cast about for a suitable excuse, "Ah, sorry Captain. We were just out on patrol and-."

"Where's you eighth man?" his interrogator interrupted.

Once again, Jinn wracked his brain for an explanation, using the first that came to mind, "Uh, Wu is on sick call, sir. In any case," he said, continuing his story, "we followed our route to the main gate alright, but on our way back to the company we got a bit…lost." He feigned embarrassment, "It's our first patrol, sir."

"_Lost?_ I'll say," the Captain sniffed before sneering derisively. You've managed to get your men lost only a hundred yards from the main path!" Continuing without pause, he continued on another tangent, "You're from the Lower Ring I expect, or from the provinces? How they ever let a dim _peasant_ like you into the _elite_ Royal Guard is beyond me."

Jinn said nothing, struggling now to conceal his agitation and not break character. If he did, the jig would be up.

Fortunately, the Captain clearly wasn't expecting an answer from him, as he affected an exaggerated sigh, "Come along, peasant, I'll enlighten you." Placing himself at the head of their little column, he assumed a self-important and superior swagger.

With the Captain's back to them, Jinn and Shu exchanged looks: This nuisance would have to be dealt with and the route of the path ahead provided the perfect opportunity.

Oblivious to their mute plotting, the pompous officer seemed lost in his own world as he spouted incessant and often self important babble…unknowingly providing the precise cover needed as the troop entered the enormous Palace Gardens. He continued his tirade, absolutely secure in his own safety, until the hilt of Jinn's sword slammed into the back of his neck, quite possibly with more force than required, sending the arrogant pig crumpling to the ground.

Han surveyed the spread-eagled man with none of the remorse he would have felt at any other time. A pair of his men proceeded to drag the unconscious man into the shrubbery and unceremoniously dump him there. The team then simply strolled out of the garden to once more mingle with the bustle of the Palace Grounds, as though nothing had happened.

With no further delay, Jinn found himself marching up the steps of the Palace and entering the Hall of Columns. Bypassing dozens of chambers, they strode casually but surely through the halls, encountering few others until their destination was in sight.

Every man tensed as they marched officiously towards the great doors of the Throne Room, guarded by six men in the Earth King's livery…and two Dai Li agents. The Guardsmen on duty relaxed their stances as they took note of the appropriated uniforms, but the Dai Li continued to watch them menacingly.

The NCO in command of the detachment intercepted their approach, the Dai Li close at hand. "State your business, sergeant," the man demanded, albeit in a rather bored and un-menacing tone.

Deeming the squad as close as they needed to be, Han didn't answer, instead simply saying rapidly, "Sorry about this."

The guard didn't even have the chance to register surprise before a large slab of marble torn from the floor smashed into him, sending him sailing into one of his subordinates, effectively putting both out of the fight.

The Dai Li reacted immediately, stone gauntlets slamming into a luckless private on Jinn's left as he rushed forward.

Shu retaliated instantly, rolling under the Dai Li's second onslaught before delivering a strike of his own, sending one of the agents slamming into the wall with bone-shattering force. With a small grunt of satisfaction, he moved on to the Guardsmen, still recovering from their surprise, leaving Han to deal with the final Dai Li agent.

As the rest of the combatants engaged, the young Commander nimbly sidestepped his opponent's first salvo as his _jian_ flashed from its sheath to slice cleanly through the next stone block sent his way. A pair of swift steps forward and his backslash sent the traitor's head tumbling to the floor, body crumpling after it.

The guard contingent fought with spirit, managing to fell one more of Jinn's soldiers, but in the end was no match for the battle-honed skill of Jinn's veterans. Jinn cleaned his bloodied sword on his tunic before giving the signal to his four remaining compatriots to do what had not been done in a thousand years: Storm the King's Throne Room. Sword in hand, he followed in the wake of his two point men as they shoved open the massive doors and charged into the room.

But the Earth King was not there; his monolithic throne stood empty. In fact, only three figures occupied the immense chamber, three face-painted and bored-looking women in green, who Han quickly surmised to be the Kyoshi warriors, the Earth King's honored guests.

His two-man rear guard peeled off to heave the doors shut behind them and place the huge bar into position to seal the chamber as their three fellows advanced on the women, whose alert instantly heightened as they approached.

He brushed past them to survey the side corridors before turning to them and demanding without preamble, "Where is the Earth King?!"

The one who appeared to be the leader did not flinch at his harshly-toned question and, in turn, accosted him in a superior tone far surpassing even that of the highly-bred Captain they'd disposed of in the garden, "Why do you need to know?"

"You're in no position to be asking questions, warrior. Now, speak!" he snapped.

"If you want to get anything from us, you'll answer my question, Guardsman," she countered.

Knowing that more guards would no doubt be summoned soon, he offered her a curt answer, "Something is very wrong in this city and we must speak to the Earth King. _Now, where is he?_"

The leader traded looks with her fellow warriors before she dropped into an attack stance…a _Firebending_ attack stance.

Shocked, Han barely backpedaled in time to raise a shield as her lips formed a menacing snarl before releasing a torrent of flame from her clenched fist.

_Author's Note__: And I think I'll leave you there for now…aren't I evil? Anyway, due to the good response and the fact that my muse has stayed with me, I updated far sooner than anticipated, even if it is a couple hundred words shorter than normal. When the next update will appear, I do not know. Certainly not before next week I don't think, as I'll be working on my other story this weekend. However, we will see Jinn and his Earth Kingdom troopers face off with Azula and her companions when we do, so stay tuned!_

_Vocabulary__: A_ Jian_ is a Chinese straight sword, in case any of you were wondering._

_I want to thank my reviewers for chapter one and hope all of you enjoyed this installment._

_Thanks for reading!_

_-The CAG_


	4. Masterminds Revealed

**Disclaimer****: I own nothing save my OCs and the storyline**

**Chapter Three **

As the torrent of flame splashed upon his guardian slab of rock, Han's mind was running a mile-a-minute,

_'Firebenders in Ba Sing Se! They're in the capitol now?!'_

Having acquired this intelligence, albeit in a way he wished he hadn't, things were starting to make sense. Deciding that now was not the best time to ponder theories as a second jet of fire threatened to melt his cover, he rolled out from behind the rock and returned fire as his startled troopers moved to do the same.

Shu sent a large chunk of masonry at one of the false-warriors and was amazed to see her jump to a height no human ought be able, allowing the strike to pass harmlessly beneath her. Landing beside him, her fists lashing out, she struck once, twice, three times with lightning speed at precise points on his body. The veteran simply collapsed in a heap, laying there unmoving, save for his disbelieving eyes.

The acrobat's compatriot performed no gravity-defying stunts, her hands instead disappearing into the voluminous folds of her robes, emerging to whip daggers and blades with frightening accuracy to take out another of Jinn's men.

Jinn deftly rolled beneath the acrobat's jab, using his bending to up-heave the floor beneath the knife-thrower, sending her sprawling to the ground and leaving her stunned by the rough fall. Before he could continue his assault however, the Firebender mercilessly pressed her attack against Jinn's two remaining soldiers, drawing his attention.

He took a step in their direction, determined to take out that Firebender before she could do any more damage, but the acrobat was suddenly there in front of him, lashing out with hand and foot. Jinn struggled to utilize his own hand-to-hand skills, but found himself unable to gain an advantage against the girl.

She was young, he subconsciously noted, with long, brown hair done up in a braid, and a delicate figure. At first glance, no one would have suspected her of being any significant threat, but they would most definitely be wrong, as she now proved.

A blow glanced off his armor padding, causing him to stagger back and he barely managed to duck a kick aimed at his head. Instead of fighting gravity, he used it to drop into a squat, swinging his leg in an arc, attempting to sweep her from her feet.

His attempt failed as she agilely leapt backwards to avoid the blow and came back fighting. Showering him with a flurry of jabs and punches, he managed to catch most on his gauntlets, others glancing off his armor and padding as he did his best to respond in kind.

But time was slipping away from him: A quick glance to his right confirmed that his two men were barely holding their own against the firebending imposter and the woman he had sent sprawling was pulling herself to her feet, hands already reaching for more blades. Her hurled metal darts quickly proved a fatal distraction to one of Jinn's escort: As he raised a shield to intercept the lethal metal shards, the Firebender managed to sidestep his partner, attacking instantly and enveloping the private in flame. Jinn's last man, witnessing his comrade's demise, found himself outnumbered two-to-one…and tremendously outmatched.

"NO!" Han roared as he swept out his blade, causing his assailant to jump backwards and out of range, but it was too little, too late: Despite fighting with skill borne of desperation, the last man was out-flanked and fell under a hail of metal and flame.

All three now advancing on him, Jinn knew he couldn't win this fight. Summoning the last of his energy, he sprang over to the fallen Shu, a man he refused to leave behind, dead or alive, and hoisted his paralyzed form onto his back in a fireman's carry before causing the stone beneath his feet to rocket him skyward towards the ceiling. The Firebender and knife-thrower attacked his receding form, firing ineffectually and doing no harm; the acrobat, on the other hand, proved far more dangerous; literally bounding up the wall, almost faster than the eye could follow, she landed easily atop the pillar of stone.

Han realized despairingly that, bearing Shu, he could not defend himself or risk dropping the man. To his abject surprise, however, she just stood there and dropped from her fighting stance, wind from the rising pillar releasing her long hair, as she briefly locked eyes with him. The determined look in her brown eyes softened and she merely nodded to him before stepping backwards off the still-rising pillar to drop lightly to the ground, unharmed.

Confused, but nevertheless thankful, Jinn turned his gaze upwards once more as his elevator passed through the vaulted ceiling, leaving the destroyed Throne Room far below as the gap closed behind him. The grounds below were swarming with Guardsmen now flooding towards the Palace. He used the pandemonium about them to simply stroll through the gate before it sealed, cautiously limping back to his command.

---

Ty Lee dropped easily to the ground, still looking towards the pinprick of light on the ceiling that the rising pillar sped towards, watching it until the light vanished from the opening.

All was deathly silent a moment until Azula rounded on her, temper flaring, "How could you let them escape?!" she demanded, heat radiating from her in waves and washing over her petite friend.

Come to think of it, Ty Lee herself wasn't sure why she'd let them escape; after all, the two fleeing men were helpless against her- she could see it in the last able man's eyes. Was it pity? Sympathy? Something else?

Well, it didn't matter either way: No excuse would please Azula. Still, she had to try _something_. "They were beaten, Azula," she tried, attempting to placate her friend, "We didn't need to-."

"They know who we are!" Azula bellowed, "If word gets out, the whole plan falls apart! Useless idiot!" She backhanded Ty Lee hard across the face, _hard_, sending her sprawling heavily to the ground, tears stinging her eyes.

But Azula's rage had not yet abated, lightning wreathing her hand as she spat incomprehensible oaths and utterances…and she was advancing on the fallen girl. Ty Lee had never seen her friend so _angry_- at least, not at her. It was terrifying.

Seeing Azula's intent, Mai awoke from her initial shock and stepped into Azula's path. "Calm down, Azula," she said, her voice the same dull monotone it always was, but with and almost undetectable edge of urgency, "No one will believe them anyway; not while we're the Earth King's 'honored guests…' at least until the guards burst in here and see you _firebending_," she added significantly. "Besides, the plan is too far along to stop it now."

Mai's words seem to have the desired effect, the crackling lightning slowly dissipating from around her hands. She took a step back from the prostrate Ty Lee, her voice resuming its usual tone, but with a dangerous edge to it, "You're right, Mai. Two men won't matter much in the greater scheme of things…or they better not, or it will be on _your _head," she threatened, scowling at Ty Lee, who slowly rose to her feet.

Azula turned to regard the still-smoking bodies with obvious contempt written on her face, but for who the contempt was for, Ty Lee didn't know. "Still, someone will have to dispose of _those_," she said, gesturing indifferently at the corpses before giving Ty Lee one last, cold, look, "Now, before the guards break in here."

---

Leaving the old sergeant to recuperate from his strange paralysis at the home of a family friend in the Mid-ring, Commander Han Jinn, doing his best to hide his weariness and limp, wove through the city streets toward the encampment. Thankfully, in the confusion left in the wake of their attack, he had managed to avoid being shadowed.

Having dumped his armor in one of the Upper Ring mansion's gardens, now only clad in a tunic and rough traveler's cloak, he easily blended in amongst the masses…save for his injuries, of course. After what seemed an eternity, he crested the ridge that overlooked the camp, swelling with pride as his men disappeared into the brush and crops, squad by squad.

Stumbling down the hill and brushing past the pickets, he practically fell into the command tent, dropping from sheer exhaustion. Captain Chang, the acting commander while Bao took the gate, was at his side in an instant.

Chang had never seen his commanding officer so thoroughly exhausted; he wasn't even speaking coherently, seeming almost in a stupor. "What happened out there, sir?" he asked urgently.

His tired and dazed commandant looked up at him with veiled eyes, "We've failed."

---

Major Liu Bao peered over the battlements of the South Agrarian Gate, their appointed target. Through stealth and no small amount of good fortune, their approach had gone unnoticed by the men manning the position. Attention turned predominantly outward, these guards looked to the attack of an extraneous enemy, not a threat from within.

Grimly, Bao noted the normal dozen men on alert guard had been supplemented by a team of six Dai Li agent, three times the usual number. If Bao had had any doubts that the Dai Li were indeed plotting something, this fact dispelled them.

Bao and his platoon flung themselves over the parapet as one, overwhelming the guards in seconds. The soldiers were taken alive…five of the Dai Li were not so fortunate.

"Quickly men," Bao called in a hoarse whisper, "take their uniforms and lock the guards in the tower!"

The men obeyed without hesitation. After all, after attacking the King's soldiers and killing Dai Li agents, what was locking a few men up in a tower? Bao was glad to see that even the men who had their doubts about what they were doing, and he knew there were some, obeyed his orders without question, willing to trust their officers not to lead them astray.

As the rest of the platoon concealed themselves in the gate's two towers and hospital area, Bao and eleven of his men donned the fallen soldier's uniforms and took up their positions above the gate, not able to help but marvel at the view from such height.

Instead of peering outwards, Liu looked over the region inside the walls. If he looked closely, he could see miniscule clusters of troopers, flashes of dark green, scurrying towards the gate to await further orders.

Yes, it looked like things were going as planned.

---

"We failed," he repeated, so softly Chang had to strain to hear him from mere inches away.

"Failed…?" Chang asked, despair creeping within him, like ice-water running through his veins. "Well then…" he gulped to clear whatever he felt was constricting his throat, "Wh-what do we do, sir?"

Jinn looked up at him, before looking back down again, "I don't know, I don't know. Gotta think…" he muttered over and over again, hands raking through his hair as he wracked his brain for an idea.

Chang, meanwhile, was growing more and more despondent and discomfited by the minute. Unable to think of something himself, he found himself crying out in desperation to his commander, "There has to be something!"

Jinn suddenly slumped, "There isn't," he said softly. "The Dai Li outnumber us and have the city under their thumb. We have no proof and no one to hear it if we did."

Chang was shocked to hear his own terrible realization voiced by his commander. "What do we do now? Give up?" he asked in disbelief.

To Chang's surprise, his question gave Jinn a jolt of energy and he leapt to his feet, weariness seemingly forgotten for the moment. "No Captain," he said, "We may not be able to save the city, but we can at least get our boys out of here to fight another day." When Chang didn't move, he turned back and hauled the kneeling man to his feet, "I need you to focus, Captain. We have to act fast or we won't be able to do any good at all. Now, what is left in the camp?"

Chang blinked twice, Han's personal purpose giving him impetus, "Uh, Second Company and a few platoons of the Fifth along with the medical team. We only moved the essential things that we could carry with us on our backs thus far."

Jinn nodded, "Okay. Now, I want you to break camp and begin moving everything towards the gate. Speed is of the essence, so I don't care who sees you- just get it done."

"Yes, sir," Chang agreed, "What happens if the Dai Li make a move to stop us?"

Already moving, Han made no pause to answer as he began packing his basic equipment and important papers, "Second Company will set up a rear guard up on the ridge and those platoons from the Fifth will escort the wagons and we take out anyone who stands in our way. Make haste, Captain!"

Chang nodded and, all hopelessness forgotten, sprinted from the tent as if it was afire.

---

Staring over the parapet of the Outer Wall, Bao noted a bustle of activity in the camp, eyes following a wave of green sweeping up the low ridge overlooking the camp. Second Company, standards unfurled to the wind and weapons flashing in the afternoon sun, was openly occupying the heights. Below, dozens of men and a small convoy of wagons were hurrying down the road towards the gate. Bao knew then that Han had failed in his mission.

He turned to the men occupying the wall, now clustered around him, "Well, men, better get ready. We'll probably have company up here sooner rather than later." The other men nodded grimly as the wagons continued to clatter down the dirt road towards them.

Not a mile away, two black-robed men slipped back into the shadows and hastened to report to their new master.

---

Azula looked on in satisfaction as a quartet of Dai Li agents led the supplanted Long Feng back to the cell he had so recently been liberated from. Meanwhile, throughout the city, her new private army was swiftly and silently taking control of all key installations as the coup began in earnest.

Things were going well: The Earth King and his over-stuffed teddy bear were already in the Palace Dungeons, the Council of Five were under house arrest, and her troublesome brother locked away in the catacombs of Old Ba Sing Se with that Water Tribe peasant girl. She smirked at the thought of that last image: She wouldn't be surprised if they'd killed each other by now.

Save those meddlesome soldiers, all was going according to plan. She glanced at Ty Lee out of the corner of her eye, the girl standing docilely aside and out of the way as the Dai Li came and went to report to their new master.

Azula pulled her attention away from the girl as the next in the series of Dai Li informants approached her. "Princess Azula," the black-robed man began in a soft and coarse whisper, "One of the battalions encamped within the outer wall has mobilized itself. Their camp is emptying faster than water from a sieve and heading for the South Agrarian Gate. Their movement is unexplained, and a company has taken a rear guard position on the overlooking heights, armed for battle."

Azula scowled viciously before sending a withering look at Ty Lee. "Apparently their escape wasn't so harmless," she spat before wrenching her head back to the reporting agent, "Gather some troops and deal with them. Take no prisoners, show no mercy. To the public, they are traitors to the Earth Kingdom."

The Dai Li officers bowed at the waist, "As you wish, Princess."

"Indeed. Mai, Ty Lee," Azula ordered, turning to her lackeys, "Go with them. I have to tend to my dear brother and the Avatar." They turned to leave and attend her will, but Azula spoke once more, halting their exit, "Oh, and Ty Lee?"

"Yes, Azula?" she asked, somewhat anxiously, not having forgotten the ferocity of Azula's rage.

_'Good,'_ Azula thought_._ "This is your chance to rectify your mistake. Don't fail me again."

---

_Author's Note__: And I'll be leaving you there for now. Next chapter, we'll see Jinn and his troops' running fight to escape the city before they're trapped there to become Fire Nation prisoners. Should be fun!_

_Anyway, I may or may not update next week, as I promised my other readers a spectacular update to one of my other stories that I feel like I'm neglecting a little bit. After that, my first semester of school is over and I will no longer have that tremendously useful study hall to type in, so all updates will be slower, unfortunately. I must say though, I am enjoying this particular story tremendously thus far and hope you are as well._

_Furthermore, I'd like to thank my wonderful reviewers, who give me new impetus to update every week. By the way, I want to make sure that all the canon characters we've met so far are in character and my OCs continue to be believable, so if anyone has any opinions on that, let me know!_

_Thanks for reading,_

_-The CAG_


	5. The Snapping of a Trap

**Disclaimer****: I own nothing, save my OCs.**

**Chapter Four**

**Ba Sing Se, Earth Kingdom- Outer Ring**

Banners snapping in the breeze, Second Company swarmed upon the heights in a wave of tan-green, the waning sunlight glinting off the polished steel of their weapons. Astride his mount, faithful Ging, Jinn organized their deployment; riding amongst them, and directing with pointed _jian_, he arrayed his platoons in a long line of battle to cover the breadth of the ridge and shield his retreating columns. The benders among them threw up earthen breastworks for their comrades in well-practiced precision.

Wheeling about on Ging, he faced the rear and watched his men dart in and out of the foliage, making for the gate. On the dirt road, kicking up a cloud of dust, was his caravan of supply wagons. Glancing to the sky, he cursed the dry weather: without the damp to keep the dust down, the brown clouds broadcast the wagons' location across the entire metropolis.

Anxiously, he turned his eyes back to the gate leading to the Mid-Ring and saw…nothing. Since abandoning all pretense of discretion, his movements had been blatant- someone had to have noted them. The fact that they had not moved to counter his maneuvers- at least, not in any way he could discern- worried him.

With this thought in mind, he urged Ging onwards towards the rocky outcrop of boulders where his officers had made headquarters in order to prepare his men.

**Ba Sing Se, Earth Kingdom- Middle Ring**

The citizens of Ba Sing Se scattered, clearing the road and virtually pressing themselves against the walls of the buildings flanking the wide boulevard leading to the main gate. Through their midst marched the largest concentration of force the Dai Li had ever exhibited. One or two of the mute, imposing agents alone were enough to make anyone, no matter how stalwart, nervous. The sight of _hundreds_ marching as one in perfectly straight columns of eight was absolutely terrifying. At their head, in stark contrast to the mold-made agents, were two, face-painted, Kyoshi Warriors.

Or, at least they seemed to be.

Ty Lee watched the people scattering before them, unnerved. Her normal cheery smile had vanished, unused to being the target of Azula's ire. The looks of obvious fear she was getting weren't helping. She closed ranks with Mai, leaning in and whispering through closed teeth, "Okay. This is really weird."

Mai sighed softly, which Ty Lee knew to be tantamount to a face-palm for her. "No Ty Lee. For us, traveling with Azula, that's _normal_. What you pulled back there, that was weird."

Ty Lee did a double-take, staring at her best friend.

Sensing no reply forthcoming, Mai forged on. "What you did back there? That was insane! You could have gotten yourself killed!" she hissed, with an edge of urgency evident in her normally-inscrutable voice.

"Oh, don't be silly, Mai!" Ty Lee urged her friend. "You saw him! He couldn't have done anything to me if he'd wanted to. Besides," she said, becoming her consummate self again, "he was kinda cute."

This was clearly not what Mai had wanted to hear. "Not him, Ty Lee. Azula! You've seen her temper, what she can do. You need to be careful: she is _dangerous_."

Ty Lee could only shake her head, albeit with the slightest of hesitation. "That's ridiculous, Mai. Its Azula! She wouldn't hurt either of us! She couldn't! I mean, we've been best friends for years!" she concluded as if that settled the matter, even though, deep inside, she was not as sure as she'd been that morning.

Mai said nothing, merely turned away to survey the massive gate ahead as though she were able to peer right through it. Slowly, it began to grate open.

"Well," she said, completely normal again, "lets get this over with."

**Ba Sing Se, Earth Kingdom- Outer Ring**

Jinn felt rather than heard the towering gate opening in the distance, its laborious movement sending tremors through the ground beneath his bare feet as though it were a distant earthquake.

"They're coming," he said simply, more a statement than anything else, as most of his men had felt the earth's unrest and those who had not were soon able to discern the distant portal's parting with their naked eyes.

As the gate completed its movement, a deathly silence reigned, the only sound being the snapping of the company banners in the restless breeze that came as a presage to the coming upheaval. For that endless moment, the men waited anxiously, with bated breath, for their foe to appear.

And then they did. The earth fairly shuddered under the even, measured, foot-falls of the Dai Li that poured from the gate in a veritable flood. Fifty…one hundred…one-fifty…two hundred…two hundred-fifty at least swept forth from the gate on swift feet and in absolute silence. Even Jinn, who had faced the most fearsome Fire Nation warriors on the battlefield, could not deny that it was an intimidating sight to behold.

But intimidation was no protection from death. "Archers, nock!" he cried. In one, well-practiced motion, each of his non-benders drew a single, meticulously-crafted arrow and laid it across the thick staves of their war bows.

"Stretch!" he called as the enemy closed to effective range and near a hundred bow strings were pulled back to the anchor point.

With a practiced eye, he watched the advance as it surged closer, and closer, and closer still until… "Loose!"

A hundred shafts soared skyward, propelled by dozens of pounds of potential energy released from the powerful yew longbows of the archers. Like a streaking rain, the arrows fell upon the agents with deadly effect, many finding a target. Dozens of agents dropped; even those who managed to throw up shields found their efforts in vain as the iron-tipped bodkins sliced through the earth as though it were water.

No sooner had the first volley hit home was another airborne, the practiced archers adjusting their aim to the decreased range and still more agents dropped, albeit less than before.

Jinn watched in grim satisfaction as his bowmen took their toll. Predictably, the Dai Li succumbed to natural instinct by increasing the spacing between themselves, thereby breaking up their powerful formation and interrupting the force of the charge.

They had ceded the advantage to him and his men and they would pay for it.

Only a pitiful fifty yards away now, Jinn and the Earthbenders leapt into action against the Dai Li, who suddenly seemed far less unstoppable than they had been at the start of the assault. With sure motions, Jinn and his fellows became the equivalent of artillery pieces, launching immense boulders that smashed into whoever lay in their path, casting them roughly aside like so many ragdolls.

The Dai Li saw fit to respond in kind and Jinn's men saw their first casualties of what would doubtless be many that day. For whatever else they were, the agents were superb Earthbenders. Their stony gauntlets came in a hail, peppering the ground and the soldiers' barriers with an intense barrage. All along the line, men dropped.

The Earthbenders from Second Company quickly collapsed back into the works as their footmen comrades drew swords and leveled pikes. Then the wave hit.

The force of the charge bent Jinn's perilously thin line, but did not break it. Their harassing fire had robbed the assault of its momentum and given the outnumbered defenders a fighting chance.

"Hold them! Stand firm!" Jinn bellowed as she strode along the line, exhorting his men to the fray, adding his own blade to the defense wherever he saw it pressed. Hacking, slashing, smashing, and stabbing, the two sides tore into each-other with a bloodthirsty, reckless abandon.

Dozens on both sides fell to the steel and stone as the clamor of arms built to a climax. Without warning, then, a gaping maw opened in the earth, swallowing up a half-dozen of the Company's soldiers, holing the center of his line. Out of the pit emerged an octave of hard-bitten and determined agents who made directly for the now-exposed command post.

Pulling his sword from the body of his latest adversary, Jinn started off in that direction to help repel this newest breakthrough but, before taking a half-dozen paces, he was confronted by a Dai Li officer wielding a pair of wicked-looking swords.

Back-peddling and throwing up an earthen shield, Jinn watched as a mighty stroke of the swords sliced through his hasty defense, encompassing where his head had been just seconds ago. Grimly, he swept up his own sword and went on the offensive with a combination of bending and sword-work. The agent, his grin feral, matched him stroke for stroke. He parried Jinn's thrust with one sword and with a lightning twist of his arm, struck Jinn a blow in the head with the hilt of his second sword.

Head spinning, Jinn fell heavily to the ground, his _jian_ clattering some feet away. Disoriented, he hardly registered the agent standing over him and barely managed to roll out of the sword's trajectory as it arced towards his head. He grasped for his dagger, only to have his hand crushed beneath the agent's foot. Crying out in pain, and acting more on instinct than anything else, he kicked out with his feet and felt them connect.

The agent gave a howl and the weight was suddenly gone from his hand. Looking up from the ground, he saw the agent several paces back, down on one knee and curled over in a position that indicated precisely what Jinn's feet had struck. Pure hatred reflected in the agent's eyes as he mastered the pain and rose. Gripping tightly both swords, the agent came on like a charging elephant-bull…and, in one smooth motion, Jinn drew his dagger with his good hand and threw.

As it struck its target, the man toppled as he had lived: in silence.

Having collected his sword first, Jinn quickly rolled the corpse over to retrieve his knife and replaced it in its sheath. _Well, _he thought, _you can't always win fighting the way you're expected to_. His…unorthodox maneuver was proof enough of that.

Gripping his _jian_ one-handedly, he turned towards the center again expecting impending disaster. Instead of a fallen banner surrounded by bodies in light green armor, the flag still flew. All around were the crumpled bodies of Dai Li agents. Beside the flag, breathing heavily, stood Captain Gee, the commander of Second Company, and a few of his men.

Sprinting the last dozen or so yards, he drew up next to Gee, who sketched a salute. "You look like hell, Commander. Don't tell me one of these jokers got the best of you."

Jinn let out a bark of laughter. "Ha! Not a chance. Just catching my breath, that's all."

"Well, if you've got it back now, sir, what do you say we put these bastards back on their heels?"

Jinn grinned shortly. "Follow my lead, Captain."

Together, the two leapt forward, their bending seamlessly combining to create a veritable hail of rock and earth, felling a dozen agents and giving the rest pause. Sensing the turning point, the ragged survivors of Second Company summoned up their last reserves of energy and _advanced_.

This last push proved too more for the exhausted Dai Li and, at last, they broke. Without any of the cohesion that made them famous, they scattered and fled, leaving over a hundred-fifty of their comrades to litter the ground.

The survivors on the line, no more than forty men, let out a ragged cheer and Jinn allowed himself to join in. They jeered their vanquished foes as they fled…but only so long as it took the next wave to appear from the gate.

Shaken, Jinn and Gee looked up and down their battered line and then to each other. Their conclusion was obvious: they could not hold another one. "Captain Gee," Jinn said quietly, "order the retreat. Every man for himself."

In the intensity of the moment, as every man on the ridge turned immediately for the rear, no-one noted fifty figures cloaked in dark green slipping through the tall crops to the right flank, figures led by a pair of Kyoshi Warriors.

**Ba Sing Se, Earth Kingdom- Outer Ring**

Leaving a Captain from Fourth Company in command and ordering the gate opened, Major Liu Bao sprinted towards the tiny convoy of wagons, winding their way along the dusty pike. Everywhere he looked he could see soldiers as flickers in the trees to either side as they made their own way to freedom.

Bao slowed to a stop, heaving for breath, just yards in advance of the wagons and was quickly met by one of the escorts in the vanguard. "Major Bao, sir, are you alright?"

Bao nodded mutely, finding his voice. After a minute, he managed: "Who's in command here?"

The mounted soldier glanced backwards. "Umm, well, Captain Chang, I think. He's back there, Major."

"Show me," Bao said.

Inclining his head, the soldier wheeled around his ostrich-horse and led Bao towards the rear. They hadn't gone more than a few steps, however, before a stifled cry echoed from the back of the convoy: "We're under atta—!"

Bao and the soldier locked eyes for an instant before the man was stricken from the saddle, unseated by the force of a three, razor-sharp _shurikens_. As the lifeless man landed heavily beside him, Bao strafed right as more bore blades chewed up the ground where he had just been standing. Coming out of his dive, he hurled a barrage of stones into the shadowy foliage from which the deadly blades had come from. Then, from out of nowhere, one of the three wagons was launched skywards, unseating its driver at its apex to plummet to the ground seconds before his charge.

It was chaos. Bao ran among his scattered men, launching stones one way, then the other, al the while trying to direct his men's fire. A second wagon was smashed by a flying boulder, pieces of it flying in all directions and felling five more of the convoy guards. He ran up to one soldier who was confusedly pointing his bow in the wrong direction, beginning to physically turn him about, only to have the man collapse in his arms, pierced in the neck by a single, metal _shuriken_.

Too overwhelmed to even drop the body, Bao took in the scene as the third and final wagon vanished into the earth without a trace. All around him were bodies, at least thirty men in soldier's green. A few, confused clusters looked about, firing in all directions and where slowly whittled down by their unaffected opponents. Those that tried to run were ruthlessly cut down before they made it a hundred yards. Bao had a fleeting impression of how High General Ito must have felt at Garsai all those years ago, seeing his men ambushed and annihilated.

This was his last thought as a crushing blow took him in the side and he crumpled into an inky blackness from which he would never awaken.

**Ba Sing Se, Earth Kingdom- Outer Ring**

The Dai Li finally moved out of the cover of the trees when the last Earth Kingdom soldier fell. Mai and Ty Lee followed. Before them was a scene of absolute devastation: The remains of wagons and men lay strewn about the road. Carnage. Ty Lee watched curiously as an agent strode up to a screaming soldier and then recoiled in shock as dispassionately crushed his skull with a shot from his stone gauntlet. Eyes darting, Ty Lee saw many of the agents around her preparing to do the same.

"Stop it!" she screamed, horrified, but they hardly spared her a second look. "Mai…" she beseeched, turning to her friend.

Something in Ty Lee's voice jolted Mai into action. Wordlessly, she whipped a single dagger from the folds of her robe towards the nearest offending agent, sending it neatly through his hand. His pained cursing got the attention of his comrades. "You heard her," she said.

Glancing from the still-cussing man to the two women, the one who seemed to be the leader shrugged and dropped from his bending stance. The rest followed suit and began rounding up the prisoners and herding them away.

Ty Lee looked at her normally-stoic friend and saw a single tear make a track down her cheek, but when she spoke, her voice was normal. "Its war, Ty Lee," is all she had to say before clearing her voice. To the awaiting agents she announced, "There are more out there. You know the Princess' orders: spread out and hunt them down."

Ty Lee nodded, losing her cheery self in the knowledge that Mai was right. It was war and many more would die before it was finally over but for now, she turned to her best friend and echoed what she had said before:

"Come on. Lets get this over with."

_Author's Note__: Well, that's it for this chapter, everyone. It feels good to be back: hopefully I'll be able to start updating again with some semblance of regularity. Lord though, that was a brutal chapter and I don't just mean the typing of it!_

_I did my best to try and communicate the blunt brutality of combat and that's one of the reasons I made this story a T-rating. I don't know, what do you all think? Should I ease back? And what do you guys have to say about Mai and Ty Lee's reactions? I figure that Mai, being an expert with the Shuriken, would realistically have killed before. She might not be proud of it, but she has. Ty Lee…I don't know. I'm sure her Chi-blocking abilities would allow her to be lethal but really, how often would she choose to be? I really want your input on this one, dear readers, because I am truly conflicted on it._

_Anyhow, thank you for reading, as always. I am sorry for the LONG interlude, but a series of unfortunate events (no relation to Mr Snickett) such as school, a job, the breaking of my flash drive, etc. prevented me. I hope, in spite of my misgivings, the chapter was satisfying for you._

_Also, for anyone who was wondering, the Battle of Garsai was a decisive defeat suffered by the Earth Kingdom in the early stages of the War. I just expanded on it a little bit to fit the situation._

_Thanks again for reading and please review!_

_-The CAG_


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